World Iraq's prime minister agrees to resign, president says, after weeks of protests

Iraq protests: At least two dead as security forces use tear gas

At least two people have died as protests intensified in Iraq, with security forces using tear gas to repel demonstrators from approaching government buildings Friday, a member of the Independent High Commission for Human Rights of Iraq has told CNN. The official added that at least 95 other people were suffering from the effects of exposure to tear gas.Hundreds of protesters gathered early Friday in Tahrir Square in central Baghdad for anti-government protests.

Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mahdi has agreed to resign after weeks of anti-government protests that led to hundreds of casualties, Iraq's president announced Thursday.

In a televised speech to the nation on Iraq's Al-Iraqiya TV, President Barham Salih said Abdul Mahdi had agreed to step down on the condition that a successor is agreed to replace him.

Students defy prime minister to join Iraq protests

Iraqi security forces on Monday fired tear gas at school and university students who defied a warning from the prime minister and joined anti-government protests that have left more than 200 people dead over the past month. require(["medianetNativeAdOnArticle"], function (medianetNativeAdOnArticle)
{
medianetNativeAdOnArticle.

"The prime minister has agreed to resign," Salih said, adding that Abdul Mahdi had asked "political blocs to reach an acceptable alternative" in order "to prevent a vacuum."

One of Iraq's leading Shiite clerics and most powerful politicians, Muqtada al-Sadr, had called on other parties Tuesday to back his push for a no-confidence vote in Abdul Mahdi.

The protests, which have gripped parts of Iraq for the past month, were sparked by longstanding complaints over unemployment, government corruption, and a lack of basic services -- such as electricity and clean water.

Many Iraqis blame the current political parties in power for their economic hardship and the scale of the protests, believed to be the biggest since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003, took the government by surprise.

Iraqi prime minister's main backers agree to oust him

Iraqi prime minister's main backers agree to oust himPopulist Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who leads parliament's largest bloc, had asked Abdul Mahdi to call an early election. When the premier refused, he called on his main political rival Hadi al-Amiri to help oust him.

Officials have attempted to regain control with the use of lethal force, while also imposing curfews and internet blackouts. The government said it only shoots when attacked, but those who have taken part in the demonstrations have disputed that.

More than 200 protestors have been killed, and thousands injured, since the protests began earlier this month.

Another wave of protests broke out in the capital Baghdad on Wednesday, made up of protesters from across the country's ethnic and sectarian divides, Reuters reported.

The demonstrations turned violent at nightfall, and protestors attempted to storm a bridge leading to the heavily fortified Green Zone, Reuters reported.

The Green Zone includes the US embassy along with other foreign embassies, the Iraqi parliament building and other government buildings.

That day, a rocket landed 100 meters from the US embassy, killing an Iraqi soldier and wounding another, a senior Iraqi military officer told CNN.

Iraqi security forces are investigating the incident and trying to determine the launching point of the rocket.

On Thursday, the United Nations appealed for a national dialogue to ease the widespread anger.

"Democracy has given Iraqis the right to have their voices heard and to hold their leaders to account," Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Iraq, said in a statement.

"Today Iraq stands at a crossroads. Progress through dialogue, or divisive inaction. Violence only breeds more violence. A public national dialogue can bring Iraqis together to draw a roadmap towards a more inclusive, stable and prosperous Iraq."

Iraq forces clear protest sites as leaders reach deal to end rallies .
Iraqi security forces began clearing protest sites in Baghdad and across the south on Saturday, after political leaders agreed to stand by the current government by any means necessary, including force. The fractured political class appears to have rallied around embattled Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi, whose government was threatened by the largest and deadliest grassroots protests in Iraq in decades.&nbsp;The fractured political class appears to have rallied around embattled Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi, whose government was threatened by the largest and deadliest grassroots protests in Iraq in decades.

— Share news in the SOC. Networks

Topical videos:

News Wrap: Deadly violence, anti-government protests continue in Iraq

In our news wrap Tuesday, masked gunmen killed 18 people and wounded hundreds at a tent encampment in Karbala, Iraq. The bloodbath sparked one of the ...

Haiti PM resignation speech delayed

Haiti's Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe has delayed a speech on his possible resignation as protesters call for both him and the country's president to step down.